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Saturday, July 14, 2007

The Dark Is Rising Movie

Two reactions: I am sobbing, quietly, at the fact that this is so far from the actual book and that it's highly unlikely that another, truer, film will be made. Who knows, maybe if there is enough "but it's not the book and the book would make a damn fine film" reaction, there may be hope. Personally, I think it would work better as a miniseries.

And, to be honest, if I was seeing this and it was not titled "The Dark Is Rising" -- if I knew nothing and was shown a trailer for "Fight For the Light" or "Seek the Signs" or some such nonsense -- I'd be thinking, hmm, that looks interesting.

15 comments:

I would go see Christopher Eccleston in "Christopher Eccleston Reads the Phone Book," or "Watching the Grass Grow With Christopher Eccleston," so I will go see this movie. And I know it will make me cry on the inside.

I'm with Emily, though I think it's more of a "Must Rent." I might have even seen "Da Vinci Code" had Christopher Eccleston been in it. Then again, even the presence of the remarkable Tilda Swinton couldn't keep my interest for "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe."

We can't forget Ian McShane! I find him quite dreamy (which is somewhat disgusting, since that's based on his seedy Deadwood character). The actor playing Will is rather uncharismatic. In terms of the book vs. movie, I try to separate myself these days. Every time I turn around, one of my favorite books has turned into a movie. I'll probably rent this one.

Up until I went to see Harry Potter this weekend, I was completely unaware that The Dark is Rising was being made into a movie. I heard the name Will Stanton and thought it must be a coincidence...but no, this was indeed no coincidence. I. was. excited. This series is one of two book series' (the other being The Vampire Diaries) that I've wanted to see on the big or small screen for a LONG time.

I am indeed disappoined that they've made Will American, and made a host of other changes from the book. But I've come to a strange peace about movie adaptations of books I love. The Queen of the Damned movie helped me see the light. I *HATE* it as an adaptation of Anne Rice's books, but on it's own, it's pretty alright. I LOVE The Dark is Rising series. Ever since I read it for the first time (in college) I have thought it was brilliant. Merry's speech to the children at the end of it all is...beyond awesome. I have mental images of all the characters and places mentioned. No matter what happens with the movie, they cannot take away my mental images and the book isn't disappearing. If anything, perhaps the movie will get more folks to read the actual books. I'm steeling myself now for the worst, but I'm still going to see it.

Whenever I hear that one of my fav books is being turned into a movie, I get excited. Then soon after, a sense of dread. In the case of the Dark is Rising, that dread seems deserved. To me, the lack of news and buzz just says that the movie execs don't care about this. They probably figured they could follow the trend and cash in on yet another children's/fantasy franchise. There's also the deviations from the book as you all have noticed. I accept that changes are necessary in an adaptation but the trailer proves that it's not for the better. That's pretty much the nail in the coffin for this movie.

Also, I'm incensed at Ian McShane's careless comment. "I know they sold a few copies, but I couldn't read it very well. It's really dense." Wow, way to promote this movie by showing your enthusiasm in making it and your interest in the source material.

In contrast, the Golden Compass is looking pretty good. I'm allowing myself to have high expectations for December. It's my second favorite book and I hope my favorite, Howl's Moving Castle, will never be made into a (live-action) movie.

That looks pretty terrible. But it does satisfy all my left-over kiddish wish fulfillment centres seeing a kid with magic powers battling authority figures. Looks like the sequels won't get made. Which is probably a good thing.

This is probably my favorite series of books growing up that fed a deep sense of wonder and spirituality in me. So much of that came from the setting, never specified in the book (to my memory), but what I always imagined was the 1940's or early 50's. To set this movie in modern times strips away at the underlying sense of purity, nostalgia and folklore, simply for the sake of marketing to youth. The stories are timeless, and I still love to read them every couple of years. This movie will flop and be forgotten.

Hi,I am another fan of the book series who is utterly depressed by everything he reads about this film or sees in the trailers. It's extremely sad what they did to this beautiful, unique story. Please, everyone, go and read the books instead of watching this ****!!!

Let's face it....This movie is NOT an attempt at a faithful adaptation of "TDIR" like "Lord Of The Rings" or "Lion, Witch, Wardrode"!!! It is one very loosely based upon that novel. So if you see it, go in NOT expecting any resemblence at all. Unfortunately, this means the odds of actually making a movie based upon the book for real are now severely diminished. I, too, upon hearing the name "Will Stanton" in the theater before the Harry Potter movie could not believe my ears. Then, sadly, I couldn't believe my eyes, as the trailer proved to be a sham of a mockery of anything decent. Had NOONE involved read the book at all? There was a South Park episode where a commentator follows Stan around and turns his life into a stupid movie trailer. This "The Seeker" trailer was just like that episode, only pathetically it was real. "Will Stanton thought he was an ordinary boy. But he's gonnna find, being the Seeker, isn't what he thought!" DUUUUUUUUHH. Oh, an PS I heard they removed all traces of Arthurian legend...Yeah, that's right.

I have just rushed home from the cinema having seen posters advertising this movie, in a high state of excitement that they have finally made one of my all time favourite books into a film... I have just watched the trailer and frankly do not have the words to express my outrage and disappointment. I have read this book so many times since I was a child and have always thought it could make a fantatic adaptation. this film appears to be merely cashing in on a successful genre without any respect for the source material and its many, many fans. I could have coped with the change in setting (just) had they kept the spirit of the book: by losing the arthurian legend and the celtic mysticism of the original they have certainly lost all soul from the story. They obviously had no intention of filming subsequent novels: how could they possibly be done without this? Also, according to IMDB they have made Will's brother Robin an agent of the dark?? WHY??? As Amelia Warner is playing MAggie Barnes can we also assume that altough she comes across in the trailer as a heroine she is really a double agent? (After all in the book she was from the dark). What a mess??? What WAS the point??? I just find the whole thing extremely arrogant and disrespectful to a book that has treasured for over 30 years. Humph.

I have tried to write this post without being mad. Staying calm. Giving the benefit of the doubt. And no matter where I begin, I end the s...

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